With the increasing volumes of bitcoin remittances, the Philippines central bank is considering introducing digital currency regulations to protect consumers.

Bloomberg reports that as the number of overseas Filipinos using bitcoin and other digital currencies to send money home is increasing, the government is ramping up efforts to protect users.

In a recent interview, Nestor Espenilla, a deputy governor at the central bank, said that the volume of transactions involving digital currencies is “rising very quickly” as they offer a cheaper and quicker way to move cash as compared to regular remittance channels.

“We are concerned with potential money laundering and consumer protection,” said Espenilla, who heads the central bank’s supervision and examination unit, as quoted by Bloomberg. “We are studying putting virtual currency exchange operators under a more formal regulatory framework.”

According to Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, the volume of cryptocurrency-based remittance transactions have risen to at least $2 million a month. Espenilla explained that although it represents a small fraction of the record $25.8 billion of funds overseas Filipinos sent home last year, it indicates the need to regulate this sector, which is currently governed by a “mere advisory to the public”.

“One class of operations framework that we’re looking at right now will allow virtual currencies to operate in the country, and that makes them accountable for certain matters like anti-money laundering initiatives,” he said.

Espenilla further suggested that the regulations will likely require virtual currency-related businesses to conduct client checks, report suspicious transactions and send data to the central bank. Philippines is currently home to a number of bitcoin-based companies including Coins.ph, Bitcoin Philippines, Satoshi Citadel Industries and others.

“We have to be mindful of what risks are being introduced into the system,” he said. “In exchange, virtual currency operators get legitimacy. For so long as the regulatory environment is clear, innovation can happen.”

The news comes at a time when bitcoin price is trading at multi-year highs. BTC/USD has broken above 800 levels and is currently trading at 853 levels at press time. With this, bitcoin’s market capitalization has surpassed $13 billion and currently stands at $13.7 billion, at the time of writing.